Abstract
The purpose of this research was to improve understanding of the musical abilities of kindergarten children and to establish a hierarchy of rhythm patterns performed by these subjects. The "Rhythm Pattern Performance Test" (RPT), an investigator-designed music achievement test for kindergarten subjects, examined the ability to perform rhythm patterns in imitative response to a recorded model. The test consisted of thirty recorded rhythm patterns, and required approximately four minutes to administer to each subject. Subjects (N =165) were audiotape recorded as they listened and imitated each of the patterns; their recorded responses were evaluated by two independent judges using a six-point continuous rating scale. A hierarchy of the rhythm performance patterns was established by examining difficulty levels for all RPT patterns. Rhythm performance pattern difficulty was determined by meter; duple meter patterns are easier than triple meter patterns for most subjects in kindergarten.
Recommended Citation
Wolf, Debbie Lynn
(2004)
"A Hierarchy of Rhythm Performance Patterns for Kindergarten Children,"
Visions of Research in Music Education: Vol. 4, Article 9.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.lib.uconn.edu/vrme/vol4/iss1/9